Currency anti-theft devices, in the form of, for example, dye packs, alarm packs, or tracking packs, are used by the banking industry, financial institutions, and retail markets to facilitate detection and deterrence of theft and to assist in the apprehension of criminals. Dye packs typically release smoke or dye to stain the currency, which draws attention to the robber, renders the currency useless, and creates evidence of the theft. Dye packs may also contain tear gas to disorient the robber and aid apprehension. Various U.S. patents describe the design of such dye packs, including designs optimized to mimic the look and feel of a regular stack of currency. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,059,949 to Caparoni et al., owned by the assignee of the present invention, discloses a design with features that enhance the flexibility of the pack.
Other currency anti-theft devices have been designed for the purpose of tracking. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,021,807 to Culpepper et al., incorporated herein by reference, discloses a system in which a radio frequency transmitter is hidden within a packet of currency. U.S. Pat. No. 5,838,237 to Revell et al., incorporated herein by reference, discloses a personal alarm device in which a controller controls a transmitter and receiver to receive position location signals, such as Global Positioning System signals (GPS), establishes a cellular connection with a remote site, and transmits device location data to the remote site on the cellular connection. Other systems for interworking GPS and cellular phone technology for location and tracking devices are also well-known in the art, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,121,922 to Mohan and U.S. Pat. No. 6,249,245 to Watters et al., both incorporated by reference, as well as systems specifically for use in currency anti-theft devices, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,801,129 to Grimm, also incorporated herein by reference.
The existing art does not offer the realism that is required to adequately disguise tracking and recovery devices in a currency pack, however, so there is still a need in the art for a currency anti-theft device with tracking capability, having flexibility sufficient to simulate a genuine stack of currency to reduce the likelihood that a robber will be able to distinguish the anti-theft device from a real pack of currency.